THE Senior Pastor and General Overseer of Omega Fire Ministries International, Apostle Johnson Suleman, in his reaction to the apology of embattled Nollywood actress, Halima Abubakar, seeking forgiveness for maligning him publicly, said forgiveness is not memory loss.

The actress, in a letter shared on social media, had pleaded with Suleman to forgive her past statements, which she admitted to be “false and hurtful,” expressing remorse for the pain and distress her allegations caused the clergyman and his family.

Abubakar said she was not thinking right then and her apology was prompted by “deep reflections and conscience.”

She wrote on her Instagram account: “I am writing to you today to acknowledge the falsehoods I made against you on social media and to offer my sincere apology.

“After deep reflection and in order for my conscience to be in accord with God, I have realised the depth of the harm, pain, and distress caused by my lies.

“I admit that I made false allegations against you and also regret my actions and the damage I caused to you, your wife, Dr. Lizzy Suleman, your family and the leaders of Omega Fire Ministries.

“With this letter, I humbly ask for your forgiveness, recognising that my apology cannot undo the harm, pain and distress I caused.

“I ask you to find a place in your heart to forgive me, as I was not thinking clearly at that time. Sir, you have done a lot for humanity; please extend your hands of forgiveness to me.”

But reacting on his X handle, Suleman asked for no further intermediation, stressing that forgiveness does not erase memories. 

“You all stop calling my phone. Forgiveness is not memory loss! Status quo maintained,” he wrote.

The face-off between Abubakar and Suleman started in 2022 when the actress fell ill following her altercation with the cleric and for several months accused him of failing in his promise to marry her, alleging also that he had afflicted her with an undisclosed life-threatening ailment that plagued her for years.

Abubakar had alleged on social media in 2022 that she had a romantic relationship with Suleman, prompting threats of legal action from the cleric over “defamatory statements.”

The controversy intensified in 2023 when she claimed she had been impregnated three times by Suleman.

       Suleman, in January last year, dragged Abubakar to court demanding N1billion for defamation and seeking compensation for the harm done to his reputation and ministry.

In April, a Federal High Court in Abuja ruled in favour of the cleric and ordered the actress to pay N10million in damages for defamation.

The court also restrained her from publishing defamatory statements against him.

       Abubakar’s apology came after the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), on October 18, suspended her indefinitely for being “behind all the slandering information of members, associates and patrons, especially news of extramarital affairs linked with highly-placed individuals in society emanating from the industry.”